When Life Gives You a Jumpstart
by MoreThanMeetsTheEye231
Summary: Eva just turned 18. Her parents died when she was 15. When she gets her inheritance, she's not happy. She gets an old necklace and a dusty tan Toyota Sienna. She soon finds that those objects are a lot more interesting than they first appear. Post ROTF, pre DOTM.
1. Every Story Has a Beginning

Hi, I'm Eva Quinnlin. My parents died when I was 15. My godparents are alright, but they'll never replace my parents. I constantly let them know that by not calling them mom and dad, as they'd prefer. No. They'd get their real names, whether they like it or not. Molly and Jim. That's who they are. I listen to teachers in school, sure. I get all As and Bs in school. My godparents are a whole different story. I sneak out on a regular basis. I've been doing it for 3 years, and they're still clueless. That's how good I am. I thought I had a decent life. But oh no, that just made things too easy. The day I came of age is the day when all my trouble started.

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I sat on the lawn at Falklan High. It was lunch time on Friday. The school was at half its usual volume, because my friends were nowhere in sight. I sat at the same spot we sat at every day. I looked left. Nobody. I looked right. There was some guy chugging Monster with his friends chanting, but no faces I knew. _Am I at the wrong spot? No. I made that mistake freshman year. I could sleep walk here by this point. I'm a senior for crying out loud! ...Where __**are**__ they?_ I thought.

I looked into my sack lunch sadly. I pulled out a turkey sandwich. That was normal. Granola bar. Also normal. Gatorade. So normal, it bores me to tears. Now where was that apple? I pulled out not the hard, sweet fruit I was expecting, but a chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting piled up on top. Half the frosting was lining the Ziploc bag it was in, but it would be delicious nonetheless.

I was just licking the chocolate frosting off my fingers when someone grabbed me from behind. I yelped and started squirming, sending my lunch flying. As I was freaking out, I heard familiar laughter behind me. "Derrick!" I yelled. He released me and stepped in front of me. Derrick was about the same height as me. He had shaggy black hair and dark brown eyes. He was always in a beanie, a different one every day. He had to have at least 20 of those things. Today it was navy blue. He was in his customary black jacket that was far too large for him. He was in a gray T-shirt and torn dark wash jeans. He wore beat up black Vans. Derrick was the kind of guy who was always just chilling at home. He got all Cs and was happy about it.

I was about to say "Where are the others?" But before I could even open my mouth, two hands clasped over my eyes. I tried to pry them off, but knew they wouldn't let go until I told the person who it was. The small, feminine hands were a clue, but the fact that the hands were ice cold told me who it was without a doubt. "Becky! I know it's you!" I said. Becky relinquished my face and stepped next to Derrick with a huge smile. Becky was shy and didn't make friends easy, since she had a "stay away from me or die" aura about her, but she was pretty awesome once you got to know her. She was asian, pale, and about an inch shorter than me. She usually wore her black hair in a ponytail. She had emerald green eyes, but half the time you didn't see that. Her bangs were extremely long, and she always complained about them, but refused to cut them. She used them to disguise her iPod earbuds, or cover her eyes if she fell asleep. The only class she ever fell asleep in was math, and yet she always got an A in that class, along with most of her other classes. Go figure. Today she wore a purple tank top, and dark wash skinny jeans with her gray converse.

Josh came up behind me and flipped my hood over my eyes. By the time I'd gotten it back onto my shoulders where it belonged he was already standing alongside the others. Josh was about 5 inches taller than me. His lankiness made him resemble a scarecrow, and his shaggy blonde hair didn't help that. He had blue eyes. He wore a red hoodie and stone washed jeans with one knee on the verge of tearing to go with his black Vans.

"Those are your party clothes? Seriously?" Becky asked. I looked down to my navy blue jacket, gray slim fit Tee, black skinny jeans, and black converse. My shoulder length brown hair was loose, as usual, except for a barrette to keep my side parted hair out of my blue eyes. "Uh, yes?" I said. "'Cmon! It's your birthday!" Derrick said, exasperated. "What? Do you guys want me to wear a tiara?" I asked sarcastically. "As a matter of fact..." Becky said, pulling out a tiara with the words "Happy Birthday" intertwined on the front. Becky handed Derrick the tiara and pulled a sash with "Birthday Girl" written in red spirally letters across it. She handed that to Josh and pulled out an oversized button to pin to clothing that read "It's my Birthday!" They mobbed on me. Two minutes later, they pulled away and I was in all the birthday gear. "Much better." Becky said. "You pull it off." Derrick said. I rolled my eyes but couldn't keep the wide smile off my face.

Just then, the bell rang. We all said our good byes and went to our lockers. When I got to mine, they had put wrapping paper and a bow on it. _I knew I shouldn't have given them my combo._ I thought with a smile. I opened the lock and grabbed my textbook. I sprinted to science and made it just in time.

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After school, my godparents took me out to dinner. We went to my favorite restaurant: Red Robins. After we got home from dinner, they sent me to bed at 9:00, as usual. They walked out. I gave them 10 minutes. Then I got up, got dressed, and went to the window. My godparents were downstairs. They came to check on me at 10:00 every night, so I had to check in then, but after that, I'd be good for the rest of the night. I opened the window noiselessly and slipped out onto the tree branch just below. I closed the window after I'd made sure I had the key strung around my neck. I swiftly climbed down and landed on the ground without even the slightest thud. I ran down the street to Becky's house. I threw an acorn at her window to signal my arrival. She was quickly out the window. She climbed down the arbor by her window, which was covered in ivy. "Parents?" I asked in a whisper. "Asleep. I'm good until at least midnight." Becky replied. I nodded and we slunk off to Derrick's house. We lightly tapped on Derrick's window. His house only had one floor, so he just stepped out of the window. "Parents?" Becky asked. "Out cold." Derrick said. She nodded and we hopped his back wall to Josh's house. We went to their shed. We all knew that the lock had been broken for years, so Becky gave it a good yank and it came right open. We grabbed the ladder and put it up to the wall. The light tap it made on Josh's window was enough of a signal for him to climb out. "Parents?" Derrick asked. "No worries." Josh said. Derrick nodded and we left Josh's back yard over the gate. We walked down the street and turned the corner. "Yet another successful escape." I said happily. "Yup." Josh said. "Isn't it always?" Derrick asked. "Now what, birthday girl?" Becky asked.


	2. My Inheritance

I had been 18 for a little less than a week. It was Thursday the week after my birthday. Of course the guys and I had snuck out again. We stayed out until 2 in the morning, so I was tired. After homework, I decided to take a nap. I groaned when my godmother poked her head in the door and called "Eva, get up! There's something you've got to see!" I muttered under my breath about it being cruel and unusual punishment to wake a tired child like this, but stopped short when I saw the clock. It was 5:30. "How is it that late already?" I asked. I decided to forget about it and just got dressed. I wasn't supposed to meet the guys at the park until 6 anyways. I rolled out of bed. I yanked through my bed head, threw on a T-shirt and jeans and walked outside while shoving my iPod and cell phone into my pockets. My earbuds quickly joined them in the depths of my denim legwear.

I walked downstairs to see what Molly wanted. I found her in the front yard. "Hey honey!" She called from her spot next to her husband. Molly was about 3 inches shorter than Jim. Molly was probably an inch taller than me. Molly had bright green eyes and curly hair. She was a natural carrot top. Molly was slender and preferred to wear patterned long sleeve shirts and bootcut jeans. She was usually in heels, but they were only about and inch tall. Jim was usually in a polo and jeans. He had neat brown hair over his brown eyes.

I walked out to meet them. "What was so important?" I asked. "You got your inheritance!" Molly said happily. "What?" I asked. "Your parents left you something in their wills." Jim said. "First, they left you this." Jim said. He held his hand out, balled up into a fist. I skeptically put my open palm under his fist. He dropped a necklace into it. I inspected it closely. I considered chucking it in the garbage as soon as my godparents were gone, but decided it looked cool and put it on. "And this!" Molly said. Whatever it was, she was excited about it. Jim opened the garage door to reveal a dusty old tan van. "My mom's old car?" I asked. "All it needs is a good wash and a new paint job." Molly said.

They left to go back into the house, leaving me with my inheritance. I walked into the garage with the van. I wiped my finger across it. When I looked at my finger, it was completely brown. The spot where I'd wiped was at least 5 shades lighter than the rest of the dusty car. "I agree with the wash. This thing is _filthy_!" I thought aloud. "And ugly." I added. I could swear I saw the seatbelts inside twitch when I called it ugly. I disregarded that and moved away from its hood to the driver side door. "Not to mention it's size. This thing is a monster van!" I commented further. I saw the keys stuck in the door. I unlocked it and sat in the seat. It was actually pretty comfortable. And I liked the grip of the steering wheel. I noticed the logo in the center of the wheel. It was a red thing that looked like a face. "I've never seen a car dealer with that logo... Hm. This hunk of junk must be older than I thought."

I looked at the time. 5:45. "Crud! I'm gonna be late!" I jumped out of the car, locking it hastily. I shoved the keys into my back pocket and ran inside, hitting the garage door button as I went inside the house. The door shut behind me when the garage door was halfway closed.

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I arrived at the park, and of course was the last one there. When we couldn't think of anything to do, I told them about my car that needed a wash and a paint job. They said it was a good idea and we went back to my house. I rolled the car out onto the driveway and got out the hose, soap, and buckets. By the end, I wasn't sure what was getting washed, us or the car. But I swear I heard that thing purr while I was scrubbing. Josh pulled paint and finish out of his shed at home. By the end of the day the van was actually presentable. We'd even cleaned out the interior of dust bunnies and put in the essentials; stock of water bottles in the trunk, map in the glove compartment, and of course, we'd put a pair of fuzzy dice in the review mirror. We were ready to drive the thing by the time we snuck out that night.

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I sat at the steering wheel. I'd had my driver's license for a while, but by law you can't drive people under 18 until you're 18. Now I could finally drive us anywhere we wanted to go. Derrick was in the front. He had his iPod out. "Hey Josh, I got the new album. Wanna listen?" he asked as he looked over the back of the passenger seat. "Yeah!" Josh said. The album they were talking about was from their favorite band. Becky and I didn't care for the group. "Hey, Becky. Switch." Derrick said as he unbuckled. He flipped over the center console and landed on Josh's lap. We all started laughing and Josh pushed Derrick on the floor. Becky slid into the passenger seat with more dignity and buckled up. Derrick scrambled off the floor and buckled in as if nothing had happened.

We went to the arcade. We played DDR tournament style. Josh was against me and lost. Becky went against Derrick and lost. Derrick and I were in the middle of the finals. "It's time to close." The manager came up behind us and said. "Can we finish out tournament? This is the last song." Becky pleaded. "Fine, but then you have to go." the manager said. The two other workers that were there also in the arcade came over to watch us dance. I beat Derrick by 340 points. The manager showed us out with a smile on his face. He complimented my dancing before he turned and left in his little green car.

We decided to go back to the park. We chatted and walked around the familiar greenery. After half an hour, we decided it was time to go home. "You guys want a ride?" I asked. "Nah. We can walk." Josh said. Derrick and Becky nodded their agreement. We said our goodbyes and parted.

I walked down the path until I stepped off dirt trail and onto sidewalk. The van was just around the corner. I saw light flood around me from behind, so I glanced over my shoulder. It was a cop car. I turned my head around again and kept walking. The police car pulled right up to me and revved its engine. Only then did I take the time to look at it more carefully. The police logo wasn't a police logo at all. It looked like a pointed face. The slogan didn't make me feel any better. "To punish and enslave..." As if a weird cop car stalking you isn't bad enough, it cut me off by driving up onto the sidewalk.

Before I could even yell "Are you crazy?" The car started to split. Metal popped out and twisted in ways that shouldn't have been possible. In a matter of seconds, a giant black robot stood in front of me. It glared at me with bright red eyes. "Where is the shard?" It demanded of me. "Shard? What shard?" I yelled in reply, panic constricted my throat and made me squeak as he reached for me. I dodged out of the hand's way and sprinted for my van. I dove back into the park running through close knit trees. _Can't fit in here, big guy!_ I thought. I glanced over my shoulder without stopping to find that statement utterly wrong. The cop car was back and picking its way through the miniature forest. I stepped up the pace and sprinted out to the cover of the trees. I jammed the keys in the lock, dove in and shoved the keys in the ignition. I slammed on the gas and sped away just as the cop car emerged from the trees. Adrenaline pumped through me as I held the steering wheel in a death grip and had the gas pedal down to the floor. I made turns I didn't think possible and lost the creepy car in a matter of minutes. I stopped the car in an alley.

Out of breath and heart pounding, I sat there and collected my sanity again. After a minute I breathed "I didn't know I could drive like that!" "That's because you _can't_, honey." I jumped about a foot in the air, or at least I _would_ have if the roof didn't get in my way. I landed back in the seat and instantly clutched my sore skull. "That had to hurt." said the same voice that had made my jump in the first place. It seemed to come from all sides. "Who said that?" I asked, releasing my head and starting to freak out. "The car of course." The voice replied, he (at least it sounded like a he) said as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "So then, if you're a _car_, how are you _talking_?" "I'm no ordinary car." "No shiz Sherlock! ...Wait a second... I'm talking to a car... And It's _replying_! I've gone crazy! That's just _peachy_!" "I assure you, I'm completely real. Here, step out of the car for a moment. I'd like to show you something." After that last statement, the door swung open of its own accord. I flinched back away from it. "Gah! That can't be normal!" I yelped. Suddenly, I felt something touching my back. I jumped away from it and squealed, ending up outside the car. The door shut as I asked "What was that?" "A seatbelt. Calm down." The voice said. Now that I was outside, the voice wasn't surrounding me. It was definitely coming from the car.

"Ok, watch this. And don't freak out." the voice said. The van spilt in a fashion similar to the cop car. A giant tan robot ended up kneeling in front of me. His eyes glowed a soft blue as he looked down to me. "I assume explanations are in order?" he said. "Yah think?" "Alright, don't get hysterical. I'm Jumpstart. I'm an autonomous robotic organism from the planet Cybertron." "What a mouthful." "And that's why we've got a shortened name too: Autobots." "We? There's more?" "Very few, but yes." "Why are you here?" "That's a long story, which we will save for tomorrow." "But-" "No buts. Even I can tell that you're tired. Adrenaline rush is finally wearing off, am I right? I'll still be here tomorrow, as will you if I have anything to say about it. Let's get you back home." I was too tired to argue.

He folded back into his car mode. The door swung open and I slipped into the driver's seat. The door shut and the seat belt snaked over me. I flinched away from it as it clicked into place. "What?" Jumpstart asked. "Sorry, I'm just not used to seatbelts moving themselves." I replied. "You'll get used to it." Jumpstart said as he took off and headed for home. For a minute, I just stared at the wheel in front of me. It twisted all on its own. Then I took a second to actually think about my surroundings, and it got awkward. "Am I even allowed to touch the wheel anymore? Am I allowed to touch anything for that matter?" I asked of the Autobot. "Why is it so different now? You drove me before." "Yeah. Before I knew you were _alive_." "Yes. You can touch stuff. Jeez, just because I'm a giant robot, doesn't mean I'm a god."

At this point, I didn't really know what to make of Jumpstart. Whatever he was, he was obviously on my side. I leaned back in the seat and idly wondered if I'd wake up tomorrow and find out this was all a dream. Doubtful. This was _way_ too real.

We reached my house at this point. Jumpstart parked in the driveway and opened his door. "Gee, now I feel bad leaving you out here." I told the van. "I'll be fine. Go back to bed." Jumpstart said. I smiled and said "Goodnight." "Goodnight." he replied.

I climbed back up the tree and into my window, using the key strung around my neck on the lock. I paused only long enough to hide the key and put on PJs. _Screw brushing my teeth. I'm too tired. _I thought with a yawn. I climbed back into bed and fell asleep instantly.


	3. Last Day

I woke up with my alarm clock yelling at me. I hit the snooze button, and that of course wasn't enough. When it started to buzz again I decided I had to get up. I dragged myself out of bed and practically dropped my hand on the off button.

I got dressed in a red T-shirt and denim shorts and brushed my hair and teeth. Before I walked out of the room, I glanced at my inherited necklace. I shrugged and grabbed it. I put it on as I walked down the stairs. I poured a bowl of Captain Crunch and ate it without thinking much. I was still too groggy for any real coherent thought. By the time I was back upstairs and parting my hair, I was no longer half asleep. I dropped my barrette and almost lost it down the sink when I remembered last night's events. I quickly finished my hair, put on some mascara and chapstick, and grabbed my backpack as I ran outside.

I walked up to the van and whispered "Uhh... Jumpstart?" "Yes?" the van replied at normal volume. I stiffened at his response and said "I half thought last night was a dream." "Nope. You're stuck with me." "It appears so." He opened his driver's side door and said "I believe it's time for school." I ran around to the other side of the car and stepped in the open door, throwing my backpack on the passenger seat as Jumpstart shut the door. I realized what I'd done as the backpack made a heavy sounding thud on the seat. "Oh! Sorry! It's a habit-" "Sorry for what?" Jumpstart cut me off. "My backpack." "Believe it or not, I'm not paper mache. I'm a car for Primus' sake!" "Ok, nevermind." I put the keys into the ignition gently. I was about to grab the steering wheel but found my hands hovering about 2 inches away. "What now?" Jumpstart asked. "Well, It's just that driving is awkward." "You're the one making it awkward, just grab the wheel and pretend I'm not here." I hesitated a moment, but took Jumpstart's advice.

I drove down the road to pick up my friends. Within 5 minutes the van was packed. We arrived at school and my friends all piled out. I reached for my backpack, slung it on one shoulder, and twisted my legs to get out, but felt something wrap around my wrist lightly. I chanced a glance and saw that it was a seatbelt. "Umm... You guys go ahead. I'll catch up." I called. My friends said bye and walked onto campus.

I swung my legs back in the car and the door shut on its own. The seatbelt unwrapped and coiled back into its holder. "I need to talk to you. I can see that you have to go, but I need you to know that we've got to leave town." Jumpstart said in a serious tone. "Leave town? My friends and I are going on a cross country road trip. Been planning it since freshman year. Don't worry, now that you're here I don't need to borrow Molly's car." "Not what I meant. We need to leave _alone_." "What? Why?" "It'll take too long to explain. All you need to know is that it's to save the universe, and your life." I flinched. I sank back into the seat after he spoke of my life being in danger. The seatbelt wrapped around my wrist again and gently squeezed it. "Hey, I won't let anything happen to ya." Jumpstart said consolingly. "Ok, we'll leave. But can we wait until Saturday? That way there will be no questions raised. Mom will never let me just up and leave with an alien." "Fine. But no later." The door opened again and the seatbelt recoiled. I stepped out and went to class.

Since it was the last day of school, classes were only half an hour. We basically returned our textbooks, then chatted and signed yearbooks. They let us out and we had to come back at 1:00, by which time the rest of the school was just got done with lunch. We all showed up in graduation clothes and went through the ceremony. 2 hours later I hugged my friends and godparents in a giant triumphant group hug. My friends and their families joined my godparents and I to got out to dinner. We celebrated until 10 and finally went to bed. The guys and I had all agreed that we'd actually stay home tonight, since today had been a long day.

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The next morning, I piled all my T-shirts and jeans into a suitcase. I decided to abandon makeup, except for cover up of course. I took 3 jackets, one light, one heavy, and the heaviest jacket I owned. I chose a comfortable pair of tennis shoes and packed my hairbrush, toothbrush, toothpaste, etc. At the end, I had everything packed into 2 bags. One was clothes and the other was everything else. I put my iPod into my pocket next to my phone. I picked up my wall charger and threw it in my bag. I grabbed my car charger and wondered _Does this work in alien cars? Well, It's worth a shot._ I threw it in the bag along with my iPod charger and grabbed my iPod's car charger. I grabbed my wallet and walked down to Molly and Jim. Before I left, Molly gave my $100. "Here's for the trip." She told me with a wink. Jim handed me an inch thick coupon book filled with discounts for restaurants and hotels. "To make Molly's $100 go farther." Jim said. They hugged me and said goodbye. I put my luggage in the trunk next to the case of water bottles that was already there and got in the car.

I sat at the wheel and went to Becky's house. "I have to make a stop first." I told Jumpstart. "Then we go?" He asked. "Then we go." I said, nodding.

Becky stepped out of her house. I got out and ran up to her. "Becky, things have happened. I can't go." "What? But we've been planning this for 4 years!" "I know. I know. But I have to go. I wish I could tell you more, I don't even really know what's going on. I have to leave. If Molly calls, do me a solid and cover for me. Just use Josh's dad's car. He'll let you. I'll be back!"

I left a very confused Becky behind as Jumpstart drove away. I looked out the back window to see Becky staring. I turned forward and looked down the stretch of road ahead, murmuring "And there goes my normal life."


	4. Family Ties

"So, where do we have to go in such a hurry?" I asked.

"Autobot base. Our regular base, Diego Garcia, was compromised, so for now we're stationed at a secret base on the east coast. It's hidden in a military warehouse in Goose Creek." Jumpstart replied.

I stared at the steering wheel, which was twisting of its own accord as usual, and said "Never heard of it."

"Exactly. It's in South Carolina. It'll be about a 3 day drive."

"Seriously?"

"Well, it would be 2 days if we went nonstop, but that wouldn't be fun for either of us. It's gonna be a long drive, so get comfortable."

"Wait, why do we have to go to Autobot HQ anyway?"

"Remember the goon that tried to hassle you the night you found out I was alive?"

"How could I forget?" An image of those glaring red eyes came to mind. And that creepy metallic voice... _"Where is the shard?"_

"That was a Decepticon. We Autobots are in a war with them."

"Why?"

"They want to conquer the whole universe, and the Autobots want to prevent that and live in peace."

"How long have you guys been at it?"

"Over 9 million Earth years."

"Wow... Hey, he turned into a car like you do. Are you related somehow?"

"Well, we're the same species. 'Cons are also Cybertronians."

"A nine million year civil war... Wait, why are you here instead of Cybertron then?"

"Cybertron is in ruins. The energon sources were depleted by the war, so we went out scouting for new energy sources. We stumbled upon Earth in the process."

"Energon? What's that?"

"Our lifeblood. Without it we rust and die."

"And why are the 'Cons after me?"

"That necklace you're wearing."

"This old thing? Why do they want my mom's old necklace?"

"It's a shard of the Allspark. The Allspark gave all Cybertronians life."

"What happened to the rest of it?"

"It was destroyed. 5 years ago."

"Ok, but how and why did it get left to me in my parents' will?"

"Eva, do you know how your parents died?"

My heart clenched as it did whenever my parents were mentioned. I hesitated, but spoke. "They were killed in a terrorist attack 3 years ago."

"That's the official story." Jumpstart paused. "I... I've had this for 3 years... I think it's about time you read it."

The glove box to my right flipped open. A letter sat there innocently. I picked up the parchment, slightly crumpled over the years, and opened the envelope.

_"Dear Eva,_

_ If you're reading this letter, it means you already know Jumpstart. We were planning to tell you when you turned 16, but since you have this letter, that means we never got the chance..."_

The letter went on to take up the whole page, couldn't read it through my tears. They silently rolled down my face. I wiped them away, not wanting Jumpstart to see. "I knew your parents. That 'terrorist attack' and 'satellite hacking' were not done by terrorists of this world. Those were Decepticons, which your government covered up with those stories. Your parents left you with your godparents when you were 15. They left to go to Diego Garcia about the shard. You mom, the clever woman she was, disguised the shard as a necklace to have it go through customs if something went wrong. The plane they were on was hit by a Decepticon entering the atmosphere. I was below on a boat when it happened. ...The last thing they said to me was 'We'll be fine. Quit worrying and just get on your boat. We'll see you soon.'" Jumpstart said. He seemed as sad as I was. "That's what they said to me too. 'We'll see you soon.'" Jumpstart and I went silent. I mulled it over and thought _Our pasts are much more intertwined than I ever thought._

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><p>AN: Yeah, I know I suck at emotional junk. It'll get better and more adventurous later on. But hey, doesn't every story start off boring? ... Please don't kill me?<p> 


	5. History Lesson

There was an awkward silence. So, of course my stomach chose that moment to growl. Loudly. "What was that?" Jumpstart asked. "It means I'm hungry. Can we go to a drive-thru?" I asked in an embarrassed tone. "Sure." Jumpstart replied. "I know there's a McDonald's nearby. Uh, should I give directions or drive?" "If we're going through a drive-thru, it might be best to not have a driverless car." "Right." The seatbelt undid itself and I climbed into the driver's seat. The seatbelt snaked over me as I gripped the wheel and steered. We were out of the drive-thru in 5 minutes. I went back to the back seat and started eating my cheeseburger.

"Hey, Just thinking here, but do you eat? Or do you take gas?" I said after a minute.

Jumpstart gave a short chuckle and said "Sorta and no."

"Sorta? What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's more of a liquid. Energon. It's one reason we left Cybertron. There's none left there."

"Why not?"

"All the energy sources were pumped dry by the war. And without energon we die."

"And since you're a car, why don't you take gas?"

"Vile stuff, that. And besides, under the gas cap you'd find lots of circuitry."

"Guess it's a good thing that you revealed yourself before I had to fill the tank huh?"

"Yeah, no kidding. Gas plus energy equals kaboom."

"There goes the neighborhood. But you look and act like a normal car!"

"Yup. Took Ratchet forever to figure out just how to do it. The rest of us got the easy part. We just had to download the coding."

"Ratchet?"

"Yup. Ratchet, along with his apprentice Jolt, fix all of us when needed. Ratchet is our Chief Medical Officer."

"Robots have doctors?"

"Well, duh. We usually call him the Doc-Bot."

"Just how many of you _are_ there?"

"Well, Let's see... There's Me, Ratchet, Jolt, Bumblebee, Ironhide, Sideswipe, Chromia, Arcee, Flare-Up, the twins Skids and Mudflap, and the Bossbot himself, Optimus Prime."

"That last one sounds important."

"What was that you said to me the night we met? Oh, I remember. 'No shiz Sherlock.'"

"Very funny. Who is it?"

"He's the supreme leader of all Autobots. And a Pit of a good fighter too."

"But he's the leader! Shouldn't he stay behind the lines and give orders?"

"Who do you think he is? Obama? No. He's actually involved in the war. You know, he once took on 3 'Cons at once."

"_Three_?"

"You bet. He trashed 'em pretty good too. Ripped the Second in command's arm clean off, beat the leader up badly, and killed the third."

"Awesome! How'd the Decepticons get away?"

"Their leader killed Optimus."

"But I thought you said Optimus Prime was back in Goose Creek!"

"He is. He was brought back to life. By a human actually. Sam Witwicky."

"That sounds familiar..."

"He was the kid from the 'terrorist hacking' video."

"Oh! The one with the creepy robot fish!"

"What?"

"Those things on the side of the ugly robot's face! C'mon, he totally looked like a robo-fish!" I put my hands to the side of my face with my fingers outwards. I wiggled my fingers and puffed my cheeks to prove my point. Jumpstart rewarded my efforts with a small chuckle.

"Ok, but seriously now. Who's who and what's up?" I asked leaning forward in the seat, anxious for answers. "It's a long story." Jumpstart said. "I've got time for a long story." I said as I leaned back into the chair. Jumpstart spent the next 2 hours explaining the ranks in the Autobots and Decepticons, and giving me a basic history of the Cybertron Great War.

Once the sun set, Jumpstart pulled into a 7Eleven parking lot. I sprawled across the back bench seat with my jacket balled up as a pillow. My eyelids finally closed for the night just after the lights on the dashboard went out, signaling Jumpstart's entrance to the Land of Nod.


	6. Motel Yuck

The day was uneventful. We talked about Cybertron and Earth. Comparing and contrasting, talking about history, and our daily lives on said planets. This time when the sun set, I noticed a discount motel on the side of the road. "Hey, why don't we go there?" I asked. Jumpstart wordlessly drove into the parking lot situated directly under the main building. I exited the car. Before I approached the counter, I raked through my coupon book to see if I had anything for "Moonview Motel" and came up empty. Quite honestly, it was so cheap that I didn't need a coupon anyway. Especially since I was staying one night. I walked up to the receptionist and ordered a one night room. She took my $10, handed me the key silently, and pointed up the stairs. Then she went back to her game of freecell.

I followed her directions and went up the stairs and down a narrow hall. I found the room quickly and ducked in the door. I dropped my bags on the floor and looked around the room. "Jeez. This place is plain, even for a motel room." I looked at the bare walls, and noticed that there were bare nails. _Oh. So the lame motel art pieces were stolen then?_ I guessed. _Well, that puts me at ease._ I thought sarcastically.

I grabbed my shower stuff and headed for the bathroom. I turned on the water and waited for a moment. I put my hand under the faucet to test the temperature, and a silverfish fell into my hand along with the cold water. I shrieked and dropped the silver bug. It landed in the bottom of the tub and crawled down the drain. I wanted to clean the faucet and knob, and had to use my hand sanitizer to do so. Now satisfied that the tub was adequately clean, I undressed and stepped in. I couldn't get the water to feel nice. It was either freezing or it scalded me. After 15 minutes of this torture, I was clean enough.

I toweled off and slipped into my pajamas. "Well, the shower stunk, but hopefully the bed is more comfortable than a car seat." I thought aloud. I pulled back the covers and was met by a cockroach in the middle of the mattress. I squealed and jumped back as it scuttled under the bed. I smacked into the curtains, and three moths flew out. I screamed and ran from the room.

_Meanwhile..._

Jumpstart

Two men approached my alt mode. They wore the uniforms from the "Moonview Motel" They split up on either side. The one at my driver's side pulled a pin out and started to pick my lock. It was an odd feeling, and kind of tickled. I could have just not let him get anywhere with the lock, but what fun would that be? These car jackers needed to be taught a lesson. And more importantly, I was bored. I unlocked the door. The second he realized it was open, I slammed the door in his face. He yelled in pain but stifled it quickly. His partner was having trouble containing his laughter, and giggles escaped his mouth even though he had his hand firmly clamped over it. "Shut it Marty!" the lock-picker hissed. "Aww, 'cmon Rod, that was funny!" whispered back the second jacker, apparently named Marty. "No it aint!" Rod whispered with as much fury as possible. "You're right. It was hilarious!" Marty said with a huge grin on his face. Rod showed him a rude gesture involving his middle finger and climbed into the driver's seat. Marty ignored the gesture and climbed in the passenger, which Rod unlocked. They shut the doors and Rod got on the floor. He started to try and pry off the panel under the steering wheel, presumably to start hot-wiring.

At this point, I decided that I let them get far enough. I started my engine. "Marty, you do that?" Rod said as he sat up on his knees to look at his accomplice. "You didn't?" Marty said. I turned on the windshield wipers. They started at them in confusion. I turned off the lights in the cab, which had been on since they opened the doors. "What the?" Rod said. I felt him get off the floor and sit in the seat. The dashboard lights turned on and started to flicker, and the radio blazed to life. Snippets of music and talk shows were heard, but it was mostly static. The two car jackers tensed and looked at each other, slightly freaked out. I shot the seatbelts out of their holders and wrapped them around their chests. The roof lights flickered and the entire car vibrated as I lifted the two criminals off their seats. The cab filled with creepy evil laughter, emanating from the radio. I felt them struggling, and their panicked heartbeats under the nylon of the seatbelts.

I stopped everything, and dropped the two. They looked in bewilderment as everything went back into place and the roof lights turned on, as if I were an ordinary car. They stopped for a moment, looked to each other, then bolted. "IT AINT WORTH IT!" Rod yelled. "DEMON VAN!" Marty screeched. They ran off squealing like little girls. I laughed at their retreating forms. _I have a feeling they won't be stealing any more cars for quite a while._ I shut my doors, locked them and fell into stasis once more, feeling triumphant.

* * *

><p><p>

I was woken again a few minutes later, but this time it was a timid tap on the hood that pulled me from stasis. As my scanners came online, I saw that it was Eva, dressed in her star spangled pajamas, standing at my hood looking apologetic. "Hey, uh Jumpstart? Could I sleep in the back seat?" she asked sheepishly. "But of course." I said as I swung the back door open in invitation. She looked grateful as she slipped into the seats.

"Bad motel?" I asked, even though I was already pretty sure what her answer would be. "No kidding! Bugs _everywhere_! And I think there's a lot of theives in this area." She replied. "You have no idea." I said, remembering the reason I'd first been woken up. She looked puzzled as she glanced at the dashboard, lifting her head from laying down to do so. "I'll tell you later. Just get some rest." I said as I used a seatbelt to nudge her head downward. She let her head fall without opposition and fell asleep quickly. And for the third time that night, I went into stasis.


	7. End of the Trek

I awoke in Jumpstart's back seat when sunlight had filtered through the windshield and fell across my face. I sat up to find that Jumpstart was still asleep. I rolled my eyes. _Just like a boy, even if he's an alien one. _I thought. I slid my feet off the seat, trying not to wake Jumpstart. But it was not to be. The lights on the dashboard came to life, and I heard him mutter in a different language. Cybertronian, I assumed. "Hey sleeping beauty." I said to the van. I could almost hear the smile in his voice as he said "Hello yourself." "I gotta give this back, then we'll go. I said, pulling the key from a cup holder. I walked back in, reluctantly re-entered my dingy room to grab my suitcase, and deposited the key on the desk on the way out, walking out as quickly as possible.

"Ready to meet the gang?" Jumpstart asked, swinging his door open. "I'm not so sure." I replied as I got in the passenger seat. He started his engine and drove away from the disgusting motel. "Something I am sure about though, I will _never_ stay at that motel ever again." Jumpstart laughed and said "I couldn't agree more." After he turned onto the freeway, I asked "How long until we reach Goose Creek?" "We should arrive by nightfall." Jumpstart replied.

And he couldn't have been any more right. We reached the outskirts of the city just after the sun had set. "Shouldn't be too long now." Jumpstart said. He sounded dog tired, and when I asked him if he was, he firmly denied it. Not a second later, he let out a sound similar to a yawn. "Ok, pull over. I'm not gonna let you drive like this. You're too tired." I said. "Am not." He slurred in reply. "Really? Because you're in the wrong lane." I said. "Oh." He said, pulling into the right lane just before a pickup truck crashed with us head-on. Jumpstart ignored the angry honks and pulled into an alley by the side of the road. He was asleep instantly. I rolled my eyes, crawled into the back seat, and tried to sleep.

After lying there for half an hour, I decided that I wasn't going to get any sleep. I decided to go for a walk instead, since I couldn't feel most of my legs by this point. I opened the door softly and creeped out. Jumpstart was still asleep after I'd shut the door. "Dang. You were _really_ tired." I commented under my breath before I turned and walked away. I found a nearby park and walked along the jogging trail. The coarse dirt crunched under my shoes. I was jumping and trying to brush my fingertips on the leaves of some lower branches.

I turned a corner that strayed near the street to find the cop car that had been haunting my dreams for days. It seemed too horrible to be real. _I must be having another nightmare. I __must__ be!_ I thought frantically. I ducked behind a tree, and headlights flooded around either side of the thick trunk as I muttered "Wake up! Wake up!" and pinched the back of my hand as hard as possible. It was no nightmare, it was far worse.

I heard the cop car speaking in Cybertronian, then he switched to english and called "Come on out little fleshling! Come quietly and I'll make your death quick." _That's his idea of a good offer? _I thought frantically. I could hear him getting closer, so I did what anyone would do in my position; I ran as fast as possible away from him. Unfortunately, he easily caught me. He picked me up by the back of my shirt and said "Tsk Tsk. Now I have to make your death painful." I curled in a ball, expecting the worst.

Out of the blue, my necklace flashed blindingly and got white hot. It stuck to my skin and burned. Luckily, the flash was violent enough to make the cop car drop me and stagger backwards. The second the cop car was no longer holding me, my necklace dropped off the skin it had been sticking to, and was instantly cool. I leapt from the ground and started running in one fluid motion. The cop car folded back down into a car and chased after me with a growl. I ducked into a neighborhood that had no streets and just winding sidewalks. "If you run, you'll just die tired!" the cop car called before driving away. His disappearance only made me more scared. It was like being the last one alive in a horror movie.

I needed to get back to Jumpstart, but was afraid that the cop car would kill me before I got to him. I wandered through the neighborhood as an excuse for something to do. I heard a TV from an open window in one house, and a dog barked at me drowsily from another house. _Why does everyone seem to be having a normal night but me? _I wondered jealously. I heard an engine rev and ducked into a bush. The cop car rolled by. He was circling the complex, waiting, watching. I scrambled out of the bush and sprinted in the opposite direction as soon as the sound of his engine faded. I knew he wasn't gone, so I tried to stay in the center if the complex. I considered asking for help, but realized that people would think that I was crazy.

I followed twisty, greenery fringed sidewalks until I found a driveway. I was about to turn back when I heard more engine noises coming distantly from behind me. I decided to sprint across, just to get farther way and possibly find a way out of this maze that didn't end in death. My fear mounted when I heard a vehicle on my heels. I went faster and leapt onto the sidewalk and into the nearest bush. "Hey, kid! I know you're back there." a feminine voice called. It was nothing like the cop car's voice. When I looked at the source of the voice, I was met with a riderless pink motorcycle. "Hop on. We don't have much time." the motorcycle said. I was hesitant at first, but the sound of a car coming closer pushed all doubt from my mind. I hopped on the bike and it sped off of it's own accord, I just held on for dear life.

Sure enough, the cop car rounded the corner at the same time we did. The motorcycle did a wheelie, and actually drove over the top of the cop car. The cop car pursued us closely. The motorcycle, being much faster than the infuriated cop car, eventually gained enough of a lead to turn a corner before the cop car got there. The motorcycle deftly ducked into a garage that was open just enough for us to fit less than a second before the cop car rounded the corner. It sped down the street and the motorcycle drove itself way.

The motorcycle stopped next to Jumpstart's alt mode about a minute later. I stepped off the bike and it unfolded into a robot. Instead of legs, she had one wheel. She tapped Jumpstart's roof. He roused and stupidly said "Who, huh?" "I think you lost something." the girl robot said. "Oops." Jumpstart said taking notice of the lack of a human in his cab.

Jumpstart unfolded into robot mode, and he towered over the motorcycle. "Well, it's good to see ya Arcee." Jumpstart said, finally fully coherent. Arcee smiled. "Primus, you look like slag." Arcee commented, looking Jumpstart's frame up and down. "Yeah? Well, let's stick you in a dusty lot for 3 years and see how you look." Jumpstart retorted. "I'm just kinda happy no one tried to steal me. Well, That never happened at the lot anyway." Jumpstart continued. "What's that supposed to mean?" I asked. "Two guys at the crummy motel we stayed at tried to hot-wire me. I sent them running." Jumpstart said to me. "And I didn't even have to transform." Jumpstart said to Arcee with an odd sense of pride. Arcee shook her head, smiling. "Scaring locals? You haven't changed a bit." She said. "So he's always been this obnoxious?" I asked teasingly. Jumpstart looked to me with mock offense, and Arcee just giggled. "Yup, pretty much. Now, let's get you two back to base, shall we?" Arcee said. Both transformed, and I quickly climbed in Jumpstart's cab. The two then sped off down the road, side by side.


	8. Arrival

I stiffly stepped out of Jumpstart's cab. I raised my arms over my head and stretched, letting out a soft yawn. The sun was just rising, as I noticed. My attention was jerked away from the colors illuminating the dawn by the sound of creaking metal behind me. I turned around to see the tail end of Jumpstart's clunky transformation. Arcee quickly followed, but her transformation was quicker, smoother, and quieter. "Woah. I'm used to seeing you as a van. I almost forgot you did that." I said to Jumpstart. "Honestly, me too." he replied. "You ok? You sound like you've got coins in your joints." Arcee said to him. Jumpstart had to look down to meet her concerned gaze, and said "Not coins, but I probably have some type of garbage in there." He shrugged. "I could've been worse off, being stuck in vehicle mode in a dusty government lot for 3 years." He concluded. Arcee looked like she was about to say something, but I intervened. "Aren't you guys supposed to be secret? So wouldn't being out in the open be bad?" "Oh, right." Arcee said, looking down to me as if she had just remembered my presence.

She guided us inside the warehouse. The place was completely abandoned, and there were crates everywhere. Arcee walked, or rather rolled, to the back left corner. There was a stack, very much like all the others, that was 10 crates tall, and three crates wide on the front side. All the crates had radioactive labels on them, which was pretty much the only thing different about them. But two crates (One on the bottom right, and one on the sixth crate up) had an odd symbol. I read the strange logo, which had the face I'd first noticed on Jumpstart's steering wheel on top of a globe with "NEST Global Alliance" emblazoned above it. _Nest?_ I questioned mentally, but I had no time to pursue the thought as Arcee touched the logo, which sent out a quick burst of light. Then the crates slid open, all of them, like a huge door. Inside looked like an elevator, which I discovered that it was when Arcee lead us inside and it started shunting us downward. We stepped out on a subterranean level. There was a large room directly in front, and two hallways branching off to the left and right. "You, my friend are going to the doc-bot." Arcee stated, promptly enforcing. "But, what about Eva?" Jumpstart protested, he was obviously trying to avoid that visit. "She'll see you later. Honey, the human quarters are down the hall and to the left, there'll be a little placard and everything. Can't miss it." Arcee said, shoving Jumpstart down the right hall, surprisingly strong for her size. I walked toward the left hall, as Arcee had directed, as soon as the sounds of Jumpstart's protests died away.

I nervously made my way down the hall. I passed giant doors on each side, obviously to accommodate the larger residents here. "Recreation Area... Galley... Human Conference hall... Ah! Human Living Quarters." I said, reading off the little placards. There were larger placards higher up the wall, but they were in a different, obviously alien language. I tentatively hit the biggest button on the control pad directly below the placard, which opened the oversized doors of the Human Living Quarters. The area was vacant of life, human or otherwise. Letting the door shut behind me, I found that I was in one large room with 10 different doors branching off from it. Inside was a seating area, with a small table near the back had paper cups and a coffee maker. A full waste basket beside the table told me that it was used often. The standard concrete floor that was all over the base was broken up a bit by a large throw rug in the center of the sitting area. I walked up to the nearest door and knocked. No answer. Walking inside, I saw that it was a simple room with a twin sized bed, dresser (empty except for a plain gray t-shirt and black flannel pants), bedside table with a digital clock (which displayed in military time), and a door leading to a small bathroom equipped with a shower, sink, and toilet. Further investigation proved that this exact set up was behind all of the other 9 doors as well.

I decided to step into the shower, considering I hadn't done so since my stay at the Moonview Motel. Even the the thought of that place made me feel the need to shower even more. I stripped down behind the confines of the locked bathroom doors, but decided to not take off the necklace, just because I didn't want to let it out of my sight. I stepped under the flow of the water which was pleasantly hot. As I was under the water, I noticed that I had a new scar. It was shaped like a rough diamond and had strange alien markings a shade lighter than the red of the new mark. I realized that it matched perfectly to the shard around my neck. _From that white hot flash of light..._ I figured. _Well, nothing I can do about it now._ I concluded, moving on. I stepped out of the shower and dressed in the clothes that had been in the dresser. Obviously, this was meant to be a unisex, one-size-fits-all ensemble. I tucked the necklace under the collar of the shirt and glanced at the clock. 23:57 the clock declared in glowing green numbers. _Almost midnight already?_ I thought, taking a moment to translate it to normal time. I used the clock to set an alarm for 8 in the morning. I then slipped under the covers and shut my eyes. I hadn't realized how tired I'd been and quickly fell asleep.

* * *

><p><p>

I awoke to the annoying beeping of the alarm clock and lazily shut it off. Rolling out of bed, lest I fall back asleep, I got dressed in my clothes again. I made the bed and folded the clothes, setting them on the edge of the bed. I left the room just after protectively tucking the necklace under the collar of my shirt.

No one was in the Human Living Quarters, or the hallway leading to them. However, when I reached the large center room I'd seen briefly last night, it was bustling with activity. It was apparently the command hub of the base. Monitors along the far wall were being monitored by humans sitting in front of an impressive and confusing spread of controls, people hustled along the floor carting papers and computers, some even carried odd looking devices that looked almost like iPhones, but they probably weren't, considering the occupants here. A few other people were stationed on a large catwalk in the center of the room, rising a good 20 feet in the air. It looked rather awkward in the center of the room. Printed on the floor, with its top facing the catwalk and with only a few feet between it and the legs of said catwalk, was a blown up version of the strange logo I'd seen last night. "NEST Global Alliance" it proudly declared, as it was crisscrossed by walking humans.

Not wanting to burst in on the efficient activities of the dedicated humans, I wandered down the hall which Jumpstart had been dragged down the night before. The doors were just as oversized here as in the other hall. "Repair Bay... Medical Ward..." I said under my breath, once again reading off the placards as I passed them. I didn't know what I expected to find down here, but it was something to do. Then the placards switched from rooms to what I assumed were living quarters, and obviously not human ones. "Ironhide... Ratchet... Bumblebee... Jolt... Skids and Mudflap... Arcee... Chromia... Flare Up... Sideswipe..." I said, trying to make connections to their places in the army that Jumpstart told me. "Optimus Prime." I read. This is one I could never forget. The leader. I felt intimidated even just by looking at the door. Turning to my right, I saw that there was a room with a blank placard. Before I had time to mull it over more, I heard noise from behind me, down the hall. I spun around just in time to see a big black robot exiting its room. It was much bigger than Jumpstart, and the giant cannons on both its arms didn't help me calm my nerves. I pressed against the wall, and it didn't seem to notice me. The wall I'd been leaning against then fell away. _Dang oversized doors!_ I fumed as I stumbled backwards. I pinwheeled backwards until I smacked into something hard. Looking up, I saw that I was leaning against a red robotic foot. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" I said, jumping away from the surprisingly warm metal. "I'll just-" I was cut off by the robot saying "Chill out Eva, It's Jumpstart!" I looked up to meet his eyes. If it weren't for the fact that I knew his young voice all too well from only having him to talk to for days on end, I wouldn't have believed him. He was now red and silver, instead of the familiar tan and gray. He had a ridge going along the top of his head and the obvious front end of a car as his shoulders, tires and all. "You look... different." I said dumbly. Jumpstart laughed. He bent down to my level, and held out his hand. "C'mon. It' about time you met the others." He said. I slowly stepped up to his hand and awkwardly climbed on. He slowly stood up straight and exited the room. I managed to stay standing, but I held his thumb tightly for support.

He stepped into the command room without hesitation. He stepped over humans as he went, and they didn't even flinch. It was probably common occurrence here. He was walking straight for the robot I'd seen earlier. The black giant was crouched on one knee, apparently in conversation with a human. Said conversation was taking place on the far side of the room, but being as big as he was, Jumpstart made the trip in a few steps. Hearing his approach, the robot and human both turned to us. The human said farewell to his robotic friend and left. I gripped Jumpstart's thumb tighter as he casually greeted "Hey Ironhide, long time no see." Ironhide straightened up, standing a couple feet taller than Jumpstart, but looking much stronger. "Jumpstart? I knew I'd be seeing you again!" Ironhide said, obviously happy. He then seemed to notice me. "And who's this?" He asked, looking down to me. "Eva." I said simply, still a little intimidated, but no longer scared. He seemed friendly enough. "Nice to meet ya. Ironhide, weapons specialist for the Autobots, at your service." Ironhide said graciously. "Thank you for not pulling your cannons on this one." Jumpstart said teasingly. "How many times do I have to say I was kidding?" Ironhide said, exasperated. He smacked the back of Jumpstart's head when he started laughing. I smiled up at the two of them, they were much more human than I'd first thought they'd be.

"Here Eva, go take a look around while 'Hide and I reacquaint." Jumpstart said, setting me down. I stepped away, and slowly started to cross the room, trying not to obstruct traffic. "Hey!" I heard someone call. I turned to the source, finding that the man that Ironhide had been speaking to earlier was coming my way. "Hey. I saw you with the new guy, right?" The man asked. "The new robot, yeah." I said. "Thought so. Captain William Lennox, nice to meet ya." He said, extending his hand. I took it and shook it saying "Eva. Eva Sinclaire." He smiled and released my hand. "So, what is this place?" I asked. Captain Lennox replied "NEST temporary headquarters." "What's NEST anyways?" "Nonbiological Extraterrestrial Species Treaty. We fight with the big guys, the Autobots, to rid the Earth of Decepticons." "Are there a lot of those?" "Unfortunately. In fact there was one in the area last night. That's where most of the 'Bots are, looking for any sign of 'em." "I knew he was here. He was chasing me." Lennox was cut off from speaking as the clunk of the elevator caught our attention. A group of 5 robots and 10 humans piled out of the elevator, one red and blue one towering above the others. "Woah, he's big." I said, looking directly at the tallest robot. "Yeah, that's the leader." He said. "Optimus Prime." I said. "New guy told ya?" Lennox asked. "Yup." I nodded.

Just then, someone called "Lennox!" "Hey, Epps!" Lennox replied. The man apparently named Epps strode up to Lennox. "No sign of the 'Con scum." Epps said, sounding annoyed. "Hey, who's the newbie?" Epps asked, looking to me. "This is Eva Sinclaire. She arrived last night along with the new Autobot." Lennox stated. Epps looked around above the crowd, trying to spot the new Autobot. "Red guy over there?" Epps asked. "Yeah. His name's Jumpstart." I said. Epps nodded. "Probably outta have an debriefing now, huh?" Epps asked. Lennox nodded. He called up to one of the men on the catwalk, and he did something to cause a clipped beep to sound. The humans immediately vacated the center of the room and stood at attention along the walls. The Autobots did the same. Lennox lead me to the ladder on the catwalk. I climbed, and once I'd reached the top he started to follow. Ironhide however, grabbed the back of his uniform and lifted him to the top. "Thanks, 'Hide." Lennox said. Ironhide nodded as reply.

Optimus Prime stepped up to the catwalk, and the seemingly awkward structure suddenly had purpose. The catwalk put us nearly at eye level with him, as well as most of the Autobots, as I would hazard to guess. Optimus Prime wasted no time and plunged straight into the facts. "There are no signs of the Decepticon in the area any longer, and no evidence that he knew our location, since he stayed miles away. But knowing the Decepticons, this was not a random appearance." Optimus' voice was deep and commanding, but not intimidating, like his form was. Then again, no one else seemed the least bit daunted by the robot's enormous size. Maybe I was just a wuss. Lennox nodded in acknowledgment of the new information, and came back saying "Well it hasn't exactly been uneventful here either, Prime. We have two new additions." "Designations?" Optimus asked, seemingly surprised. "Jumpstart, sir." Jumpstart chipped in. Optimus turned to the source of the voice. "Jumpstart, old friend, it is good to see you again." Optimus said. I could just see the smile on his face, but he quickly returned his gaze to Lennox. "You said there were two?" Optimus asked. "Yes, this is Eva Sinclaire." Lennox said, nudging me forward on the catwalk. "Hi." I said meekly. "It is pleasant to meet you." Optimus said kindly. "She has informed me that the Decepticon we detected last night was chasing her." Lennox continued. Optimus looked to me, confused as to why I was being targeted. "Yeah, some crazy cop car. He kept demanding this thing he called 'the shard'. I think he meant this." I said, pulling out my inherited necklace. "Indeed he was." Optimus said. Just then, the necklace started to warmly glow in my hand. I looked down to it, as did everyone else in the room. I commented "Well, that's new." "Why don't you go with the Autobots? They'll figure out this whole Allspark business." Lennox said.

Jumpstart stepped up to the catwalk and picked me up. He then followed Optimus, Ironhide, and some other yellow robot down the hallway. Jumpstart deposited me on a large metal slab in the room marked "Repair Bay". "My name's Ratchet. Let me just ask a few questions, and then we'll take care of the Allspark shard." The yellow robot said. "Ok." I said, seating myself. The others stood off to the side as Ratchet asked "Has it done this before?" "Only once, but not like this. It was a sudden burst of light. It was enough to make that insane cop car drop me so I could run. Left me a scar though." I said. "Hm. Let me see something." Ratchet said. He offered his hand, which I climbed on. He crossed the room, taking me away from the others. The glow of the shard fade out. He brought me closer, and it shone brightly. "I originally thought the shard was just reacting to Cybertronians in general, but it must be the Matrix of Leadership in your possession, Optimus." Optimus nodded. "Well, I assume you'd like this now, huh?" I asked, holding the shard. Ratchet nodded. I reached around my neck to open the clasp, only to find that I was melted shut. "The clasp is melted, I can't get it off. I said. "Here, I'll get it then. Ironhide said. Ratchet set me down so that Ironhide had more room. Ironhide snapped the chain easily and tried to lift it away, but the shard got warm and stick to my skin, right over the scar it had left. As Ironhide lifted the necklace away, I was lifted right with it until the point that I was actually off the table, dangling by the chain. "Ow." I said quietly. Ironhide quickly set me down and let go of the chain. It melded together as if it had never been broken. Ratchet frowned thoughtfully and said "This is worse than I thought."


	9. The Bond

"Worse than you thought? What exactly did you think?" I asked, getting worried. Was I going to drop dead or something? As if reading my frantic and overly paranoid thoughts, Ratchet quickly explained "Well, it seems that you and that Allspark shard are now bonded." "Is that even possible?" Jumpstart asked. "Wait a second, bonded? The heck does that mean?" I cut in before Ratchet could reply to Jumpstart's query. "The Allspark shard has chosen you as a carrier. Its power is now entwined with your life force, at least partially." Ratchet stated bluntly. I picked the metallic shard away from myself. While it sat on my palm, it warmed on my hand as if it were proud of itself. Wait. Pride? Emotion? "Is this thing _alive_?" I asked suddenly. Ratchet shrugged. "Not as far as we know. The Allspark is a mystery even to us in some aspects. This is the first time anything even remotely of this sort has ever happened in the history of the Allspark, as far as records go anyway, so I can't really tell you what will happen."

Optimus Prime chose this moment to put a hand on Ratchet's shoulder and guide him slightly away from the group. "I do not wish to pull another innocent organic into our war, is there any way to remove the shard?" Optimus asked. "No. Removal of the shard would kill her." Ratchet replied, shaking his head. "If you're going to talk about me and my future, at least include me." I chimed in, causing all Autobots present to turn their heads toward me. "Why do you guys seem so surprised? I'm not deaf." I said in reply to their shocked expressions, crossing my arms in annoyance. "You can understand us?" Jumpstart asked me. "Duh. You're speaking plain english. What's not to get?" I said, confused. "But we are not conversing in English. How do you understand Cybertronian?" Optimus said. I realized with a start that he was right. If I focused on their voices, I could hear that they were clicking, whirring, and beeping. Yet that garble somehow translated to coherent words. "...As far as I knew, I didn't..." I muttered, my arms dropping to my sides in bafflement. Was I even speaking in English? Yes. I was. One thing that was normal, at least.

"It must be your bond with the Allspark. The link is leaking into you some of the knowledge stored within the Allspark." Ratchet hypothesized. "I wonder what it's getting from me?..." I mumbled, looking down to the shard around my neck. I was pulled from my thoughts as a harsh blue light washed over my body. Squinting my eyes at the origin of the light, I was slightly surprised to see Ratchet's face when the light winked out. "Interesting..." Ratchet mumbled. "The frick was that?" I asked. "A simple scan. I'd like you to return regularly so I may see how the bond is affecting you." Ratchet said. Apparently that was some kind of dismissal, because Jumpstart approached me and laid his hand in front of me. Some little voice in the back of my head corrected _Servo, not hand._ Shaking my head as if it would shut the voice up, I climbed into Jumpstart's open hand, and he took my away. The others stayed to chat. I had no doubts that it would be about me.

"Well, what now?" I asked of my much larger wine red companion. "Well, now you have to go talk with the lawyers, and I have to go out on patrol." He said. "Ugh, seriously? No one likes lawyers!" He chuckled. "Well, you _are_ knee deep in a government secret that's been hidden for 2 years. You didn't think they'd ignore you, did you?" I huffed. "Stupid government." Jumpstart set me down on top of the catwalk in the center of the command room. He called "Good luck!" over his shoulder before he left.

_ Perfect. I have no clue who anyone is or where I'm supposed to go. Thank you Jumpstart._ I groaned mentally. Looking around the catwalk, I spotted the man who I'd met earlier. Figuring that he could help me, I wormed my way across the crowded catwalk to where he stood, looking over the shoulder of a man at a console. "Lennox?" I asked shyly. He turned and greeted me with a "Oh! Miss Sinclaire! What's up?" The formal name he gave me seemed out of place in his otherwise casual sentence. "Please, call me Eva. And Jumpstart told me I had to sort out a few things with some lawyers or something?" "Oh. Yeah, That's kinda important. I'm just glad I'm not the one who has to deal with all that. I just shoot Decepticons. Follow me, I'll get ya where you need to go." I gratefully followed the soldier to meet my doom with the lawyers.

An hour later I emerged from the offices used by the Public Relations officers. (It was one of the few rooms without an Autobot-sized door.) Basically, I'd signed a huge contract that pledged that I would stay silent about the Autobots. (And Decepticons too.)

I wandered back out to the command room. The sound of the elevator caught my attention. Instead of seeing the wine red Autobot I was hoping for, I saw a yellow Autobot with a brunette young man by his feet. _Pedes_. The little voice corrected again. Shrugging it off, I was surprised to see the young man wave at me. Weakly waving back, he took that as invitation to come closer. "Hi!" He said. "Hey." I replied. "I'm Sam. Sam Witwicky." He held his hand out for me to shake. I took it and said "Evalyn Sinclaire. But please call me Eva." Sam nodded up to the large Autobot looking down at our conversation behind him. "This is Bumblebee." Bumblebee whirred and waved. "He's got speech problems." Sam explained. Bumblebee gave an offended beep from behind him. Sam ignored him. "I see that you're in civilian clothes. So, how'd you get pulled in?" Sam asked. "My car turned into a robot." I said with a shrug. "Me too!" Sam said, "I guess that's one thing we have in common." "Well, I don't think that you ever had an Allspark bond to you." I said, displaying the shard necklace. "And I bet you never had every government in the world looking for you." Sam countered, placing a hand on his hip. "I knew I saw you somewhere! You were all over the news!" Sam sighed. "Tell me something I don't know. Hey, wanna go watch a movie?"

I was halfway through _Back To The Future __II_. Sam had to go after the first movie finished, and Bumblebee was taking him home. That left me alone in the oversized rec room. The old 1980's movie looked even cheesier than I remembered when blown up on the Autobot-sized screen, which made it all the better. I was pulled from my movie when metallic footsteps approached the tiny human-sized couch from behind. Throwing my head back I could see that it was Jumpstart, despite the fact that I was seeing him upside down. "There you are! Where have you been?" I asked him, flipping right-side-up again. "While I knew you were busy, I was getting reacquainted with the old gang." he shrugged. "Wanna go for a drive? You still haven't tried my new alt-mode." "Sure." I hit the power button and the giant screen went dark. Jumpstart grabbed my leg, dangling me upside down and I squawked in disapproval. He chuckled and set me onto his palm. He then exited the base.

Folding down into his vehicle mode, I got my first good look at it. He was a shiny, new, wine red Toyota Sequoia SR5. _This is much nicer than the old, dull, Toyota Sienna that first appeared on my driveway._ I thought. The passenger door swung open directly in front of me. "Hop in." Jumpstart invited. I happily obliged. As I plopped myself onto the comfortable black seat, the door shut after me and the seatbelt snaked over me. He then took off.

"Been a while since I've had this much knowledge of a passenger." Jumpstart commented. "Huh?" I asked. "Last time I was giving you a ride, most of my internal sensors were deactivated to conserve energy. I mean, I could tell where you were, but now I can feel everything down to your heartbeat." I stiffened. "I can feel that too, calm down." He said. I slowly did as he said. I nearly jumped out of the seat when I felt it move. I probably would have, were in not for the seatbelt restraining me. The best I could manage was leaning away from the back of the seat. "You ok?" Jumpstart asked. "Did your seat just move?" I asked. "Yeah. It did. Chill." Jumpstart said, using the seatbelt to pull me back. I allowed him to, and I felt the seat move and stiffened until I realized that the seat was molding itself to the curves of my back. "Comfy." I commented sincerely. "I thought you'd think so." Jumpstart said.

"So. Can you feel... this?" I asked, poking the seat. "Yes." Jumpstart said simply. "This?" I placed my hand on the dashboard. "Yup." "This? I lightly tapped the floor with my foot. "Yes, I can feel everythin- Hey! That tickles!" He broke off as I poked my finger in between the folds of the seat. "Oh, really?" I asked evilly. "Don't you dare." Jumpstart warned. I ignored him as I mercilessly repeated the action that had tickled him on different areas of the seat. "Hey! Quit it!" he protested between laughs. I was so intent on my torture that I didn't notice the person next to me until he grabbed my wrist. "Ack!" I cried, yanking my limb out of the mystery man's grasp. He sat up from leaning over the center console in the driver's seat. One hand on the wheel, he said "You really are jumpy tonight." in a voice that was all too familiar. "Jumpstart? Since when can you do that?" I asked, poking the man. He was solid. "Since I wasn't almost dying from lack of energy. It's a holoform. A holographic projection made solid with nanobots." "Dying from lack of energy?" "Yeah. No biggie." "No biggie!" I didn't know which to swat, the seat or the man. So I did both. "Well, I'm alive now, so who cares?" Jumpstart defended. "You better makes sure it stays that way." I scolded. Jumpstart sighed. "You sound just like Ratchet."


	10. Moving

I was dragged back to consciousness by a hand shaking me. I groggily turned my head to look at the hand still resting on my shoulder. Following the arm upwards, I was met with a 20 year old man's face. Shaggy brown hair, fair skin, and unnaturally blue eyes. "Jumpstart, let me sleep!" I muttered, shoving my head under my pillow. Through the air hole I left, I could see the midsection of Jumpstart's holoform. Red jacket unzipped to reveal a black shirt with the Autobot logo on the collar of the jacket. Leather belt holding up jeans. Same as always. "No can do, Sunshine." Jumpstart insisted, stripping off the blankets in one swift motion. "Jumpstart, give me back the blankets, it's cold!" I demanded, sending a sleepy glare his way. It always was cold here. I was used to California weather. I brought out a jacket on days where the locals around here walked around in a T-shirt and were totally fine. "We have to go. We're moving back to Diego Garcia." Jumpstart explained. "I thought you said it was compromised or something?" I asked. "I dunno. I just follow orders. The other Autobots and I are being sent ahead, carrying the soldiers of NEST. Everyone else will be there a few days later after they transfer data and deal with clean up. So, unless you wanna be left here alone with the lawyers, you need to hustle."

I was off the bed in seconds. Jumpstart ushered me into the bathroom where my suitcase was already laid out. I changed quickly, ran a brush through my hair, and dashed outside, my suitcase in hand. The large bag thumped against my leg as I made my way out to Jumpstart, who waited in the hallway. "Finally ready?" he asked. I rolled my eyes. "I'll take that for ya." he said, snatching my suitcase and shoving it into his subspace pocket. I followed him out to the command room and up into the warehouse area topside, which most of the crates had already been cleaned out of. The soldiers were bustling about making final preparations. Finally, Lennox called up to Optimus. "Okay, we're all set." Optimus nodded and called to his soldiers "Autobots, transform and roll out!"

Obediently, all the Autobots folded in on themselves until various cars sat in their places. All doors popped open and soldiers piled in. I waved at Epps and Lennox as they climbed into Ironhide. I suddenly found that something was wrapped around my waving wrist. It was a seatbelt coming from Jumpstart's open passenger door. "You're with me." Jumpstart said, giving a playful tug with the seatbelt. It unwound as I climbed in, the door shutting behind me and the seatbelt snaking over me. The now loaded Autobots pulled out onto the road. I felt how Jumpstart molded the seats to the backs of his passengers, and adjusted the seatbelts for optimum comfort. We settled in for a long ride to come.

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The ride hadn't been as boring as I'd feared. The Autobots used comm frequencies to connect to each other, and played the conversation over their radios, so that it didn't matter which Autobot you were riding with, the entire NEST team could chip into the conversation.

Once the sun started to set, the Autobots knew they had to stop for the night. The Autobots needed rest after driving for so long, and the humans were all getting drowsy. They Autobots pulled off the freeway and onto a smaller country road. They pulled into the woods and quickly found a clearing that would accommodate the bots as well as conceal them. The humans piled out of the cars and stretched stiff muscles. The Autobots transformed and mimicked the humans, stretching muscle cables and twisting stiff joints.

Most of the soldiers were handed tents that had been stored in the bots' subspace pockets, and they made their places to sleep. Autobots milled about helping the soldiers where they could. Some were with Optimus receiving their orders. Since the bots needed less sleep, they were going to handle watch duty. The duty would be alternated night to night, instead of changing every few hours like humans would have to. Jumpstart had gone into the woods to check for any signs of Decepticons along with Bumblebee. Optimus, Bumblebee, and Jumpstart were the ones with watch duty tonight.

With Jumpstart occupied, that left me standing alone, feeling awkward. Just when I was pondering what to do with myself, I heard someone call my name. Turning to the source, I saw Lennox and Epps waving me over. I trotted over to them. "What's up?" I asked. "You looked like you didn't know where to go. Am I right?" Lennox asked. "Yeah, pretty much." I admitted. "Then bunk with us. We've got room." Epps offered, with a nod of agreement from Lennox. I was confused for a moment, because they were standing on an open part of the clearing with not even a basic kind of shelter in the vicinity. I didn't have too much time to be confused as mini earthquakes announced the approach of an Autobot. I turned to see Ironhide stepping over a tent and coming to a stop just behind Lennox and Epps.

"Evenin' Ironhide." Lennox greeted the mech with a grin. "Evening." Ironhide replied. "You guys bunk with Ironhide?" I asked of the soldiers. "Oh yeah, a lot of the guys bunk with the bots. No reason not to." Epps explained. "While on the road, it is best to recharge in vehicular mode so as not to be accidentally spotted by civilians, which leaves our cabs able to be occupied." Ironhide added. "Hey, Ironhide, Eva's got nobody to bunk with. You got room?" Lennox asked, turning back to the giant robot. "Yes. I can make room." Ironhide said simply. With that, the black mech transformed back into his GMC Topkick alt mode. Even after he was a truck, gears were still turning as he adjusted the seats into beds of sorts. The doors popped opened to reveal the new setup. The front seats were leaned back to make comfortable bunks, and the back bench seat had been lowered to floor level to give the sleeper room under the backs of the front seats.

Lennox climbed into the drivers side, where the steering wheel made no appearance, and Epps got into the passenger side. I crawled into the back and laid on the surprisingly comfortable bench seat. The seat came alive as the cushions molded to my shape. The cab was much warmer than the frigid air outside, but the chill lingered, so I threw my jacket over me like a blanket and attempted to pillow my head on my arm unsuccessfully. Ironhide must have noticed, because I felt the jacket being dragged off me. Opening my eyes, I saw that two seatbelts were folding it, and then my head was lifted by another seatbelt and the makeshift pillow slipped underneath. As I settled my head into the jacket-pillow, a current of warm air washed over me from an unseen vent and continued until I stopped shivering. I was vaguely aware of the lights on the dashboard finally deactivating, meaning Ironhide had fallen asleep. I quickly followed his lead.

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Camp was quickly packed in the morning, and we were back on the road. I sat in Jumpstart's drivers seat, the conversation over the comm providing entertainment once again. Ironhide rode just behind Optimus, who lead the convoy. Jumpstart brought up the rear. Optimus and Ironhide disappeared for a moment as the road bent sharply. "We've got company." Ironhide's gruff voice reported over the comm just as Jumpstart started to take the turn. Sure enough, just around the bend there was a blockade of Decepticons with blasters trained on our caravan. One stood in front of the others. Jumpstart had explained about the Decepticons well enough that I recognized him as Megatron. Megatron grinned, showing off his fang-like teeth, saying "Hello, Autobots. Welcome to your death."


	11. Roadside Skirmish

The next few moments went by at an insane speed. The soldiers and I piled out of Jumpstart's cab, me stumbling out ungracefully on the old cracked asphalt in my rush. The second his cab was vacant, Jumpstart transformed to root mode. He was instantly on the front lines. The NEST soldiers were darting around the Autobots' legs, taking shots at their oversized mechanical enemies. All I could do was watch.

Lennox sprinted back over to me. He had to almost yell to be heard over the battle as he ordered "Get to cover! Hide! Oh, and I didn't give you this." Lennox shoved a glock into my hand, and ran back to rejoin the fight. I gripped the handgun tight, my index finger on the side of the barrel and all my other fingers holding the handle in a death grip. I dashed off the road and past the tree line. Woods were on either side of the road, so it wasn't hard to figure out where to hide. Once I was sure I was out of sight, I hid behind a tree, the sounds of battle still behind me. Suddenly the two painfully boring weeks at the temporary NEST base seemed much more appealing.

I looked down at the gun. I knew how to handle one, since Becky loved to take me to her uncle's shooting range. But I'd only ever shot soda cans, and I wasn't even that accurate. Nonetheless, the gun was a small comfort since I was not completely defenseless.

The shard around my neck started to get hot, almost as if in urgency, and I got the feeling I should move. I hurriedly tucked the shard under my shirt, out of sight, and dashed for a tree nearby that would be good for climbing. Just as I passed into the canopy of green boughs, I heard a sudden crash nearby. I'd been around giant robots long enough to know that I now had one in my presence as giant footsteps, muffled by fallen leaves, could be heard nearby. I kept climbing as silently as possible until I figured I would be above the 'Con's head. Through the thick foliage, I could just make out a top-heavy mech's frame. I instantly identified the 'Con as Starscream. "The Shard is close by... But where... Come out, my little fleshling. I'm not going to hurt you. Much. I promise your death shall be swift." Starscream called. I sandwiched my spine into the trunk of the tree, knowing it was only a matter of time before he thought to look up.

As he turned to face me, but still didn't see me, I aimed my gun. I took one deep, silent breath to still my shaking hand. I waited for an opening, and I pulled the trigger.

Jumpstart

From the edge of my vision, I saw Barricade ready a missile and aim for me. I knew I couldn't dodge fast enough, but just as he was launching the missile, Bumblebee toppled the police cruiser with a full body tackle. The blow misaligned the shot, and it was headed for the ground a few meters away. I stooped down and grabbed the two stray soldiers in the area just before the missile hit. The resulting shock wave was enough to topple a few mechs and most of the humans, and send me flying. I was sent sailing over the back lines, leaving Ratchet and a few soldiers to scramble out of the way. I hit the ground hard, creating a new web of deep cracks in the old asphalt. The glass of my windshield was completely shattered, but the humans still in my hands and I were mostly unharmed. While the soldiers were now quite rattled, they were still alive, and they both nodded to me in lieu of a thank you before running back into the fray.

I laid there a moment, letting my systems recalibrate. About then I heard a gunshot, and it wasn't anywhere near the battle. Eva. _I'm so stupid! I never should have left her alone!_ I berated myself as I sprung to my feet and rushed for the area the shot came from.

As I came into the woods, snapping branches in my haste, I found Starscream stumbling around a clearing bleating "My eye! My eye!" Once he spotted me, he stopped clutching at his face, revealing his broken optic. He dashed across the clearing, grabbing something from a tree. The feminine scream told me it was Eva. "Ta-ta, Autoscum." Starscream said, igniting his thrusters. I leapt at him, catching one of his legs. "I will never let you 'Cons hurt any of my humans ever again! Never!" I shouted, pulling myself up higher, using his wing as a handhold. "Whoever said I needed your permission?" Starscream sneered, doing a quick spiral. I slid back down, and only was able to keep hold of his ankle. When we were this high in the air, the Seeker had the advantage.

As Starscream was glaring down at me and attempting to throw me off, Eva was squirming in his grip. She finally managed to get one hand free, and that hand was holding a gun. She aimed, and took her second shot. Starscream cried out in pain, and clutched at his face once more. "My eye! I can't see!" Starscream screeched. I took my opportunity to get up onto his back. I grabbed both his wings and shoved them downward, forcing the Seeker to head Earthward. The Seeker cursed at me in every language he knew (which was a lot) but couldn't reach me past his own wingspan. Just before we hit the ground, I snatched Eva from his grip and jumped. With a final flurry of swears to put Ratchet to shame, Starscream crashed into the ground, leaving a deep crater. He stood painfully but knew he was now outmatched, so he took to his heels. He left the clearing, arms in front of him to guide him since both his optics were shot.

Now that we were safe, I let my hand slide off my chest, revealing Eva to the open air. She looked up to me and said "Nice save." "Nice shot." I replied. "I don't think I did it alone." She said, pulling the Allspark shard into view. We both looked up at the sound of jet engines and saw the Decepticons retreating. Both of us breathed a sigh of relief.

I sat up slowly and let Eva climb the short distance to my shoulder before standing. I made my way back to the road, to where Ratchet was already treating the worst of the Cybertronian wounds and the human medics were also in overdrive treating the human soldiers. Ironhide walked over. Energon was oozing slowly from his shoulder, but he didn't seem to care. Ratchet didn't look up from where he had his hands buried in Bumblebee's knee as he scolded "Ironhide, get back here! You're still wounded!" "Don't worry Doc, I'm not going far." Ironhide dismissed casually. Ratchet muttered something about hard-helmed weapons specialists, which Ironhide ignored as he greeted us. "So, looks like you two saw some action." "More than I'd wanted to see." Eva replied, earning a smirk from the black mech.

Optimus stood from where he'd been kneeling, in conversation with Captain Lennox. "Autobots, we will camp here for the night to make all the necessary repairs." Optimus announced, earning a nod from everybot present to acknowledge the statement. I was happy to oblige. Rest seemed like a good idea right about then.


	12. A Night on the Beach

Eva

The rest of the ride back to California was thankfully uneventful. Once everyone made it back to the island military base, repairs were finished (Driving with a shattered windshield will actually get you pulled over a lot, as we quickly learned.) and the team resettled. The base was bigger than the one we'd previously been in, and this base was actually above ground. The fact that we had the whole island to ourselves also meant that the bots could walk around in robot mode without fear of being spotted. We were now also back in California weather, which was a blessing and a curse.

This California weather now left the beach I sat on cold as the last rays of sunlight had long since disappeared. I looked heavenward as I tried to pick out constellations I knew, the rhythmic crashing of the waves a loud melody in the background.

I was surprised when a head plopped into my lap. I looked down into the bright blue eyes of Jumpstart's holoform. "Hey there, human." I looked back out to the dark ocean and absently started running my fingers through Jumpstart's hair as I replied with a tired "Hey." Jumpstart sat up and adopted the same position as me, leaning back on his hands and stretching his legs out in front of him. "Hey, you okay?" He asked, voice laced with genuine concern. I smiled weakly and replied "Yeah. Just couldn't sleep." I thoughtlessly reached up my hand to touch my left shoulder. The wound there had resulted from the combination of Starscream's yanking me out of a tree and the unfortunate placement of a broken branch. I'd had plenty of minor scratches that healed within a few hours, but this one would scar. Jumpstart didn't miss the motion and asked sadly "Nightmares?" He'd know if I was lying, so I told him yes. "I feel Starscream's grip on me all over again, and my blankets become an unbearable weight that's about to crush me, and I just can't sleep. If I get Starscream out of my head, Barricade takes his place." I confessed.

He took my hand. "I won't let them hurt you. I promise." He assured me gently. I sighed, "I know you won't, that's what I keep trying to tell myself. I can't believe how dumb this all is. You've faced these guys your whole life, which is longer than I can ever hope to live and then add a few millennia, and yet I'm shaken up by only two encounters." I paused, _"I feel like such a sparkling!"_ I yelled the last part in Cybertronian, hardly aware of the language switch or the fact that I was using their vocabulary instead of mine.

Jumpstart scooted closer and threw a comforting arm around my shoulders. "You were never meant to have to combat the Decepticons, I was. You're not two stories tall and covered in thick armor, I am. This isn't you war, and you don't have to fight it." Jumpstart consoled me. "But it's my world, I have to defend it any way I can." I said. The shard hanging from my neck warmed up, as if trying to comfort me as well and say "Now you've got the right idea!" Jumpstart and I both looked down at it was the symbols engraved across it surface started to faintly glow a pure blue. I gently tucked the trinket into my shirt and it stopped glowing like it knew I wanted it to be hidden.

Jumpstart still had me pulled against his side. "You're cold." He said. I nodded. I was only in pajamas after all. Jumpstart's holoform disappeared and shortly thereafter, Jumpstart the robot walked onto the beach. He scooped me up and set me on his shoulder, and before I had a chance to ask about his choice of placement, a warm burst of air hit me coming from a vent near his neck. It smelled very metallic. "You have robo-breath?" I commented. "Short answer; not really. Technical answer; you'd have to ask Ratchet. I know it has something with cooling our internal systems or whatever. I can take you off, if you want." He answered casually. "No. Robo-breath is warm." I said as I made my way closer to the vent. Jumpstart chuckled, the action sending small vibrations throughout his chassis.

I curled myself as close to the vent as possible while still remaining comfortable, which landed me right next to Jumpstart's neck cables which were also warm. Jumpstart had no objections.

Companionable silence ensued, the only sound coming from the thundering waves. Now in my warm niche, I felt utterly safe. The pangs of worry leaving let drowsiness return to me. I started to doze against his collar ridge, and he let me until I finally drifted into blessed sleep.

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((A/N: Hey guys! Guess what, I'm not dead! ...Yet. Please don't kill me? Yeah, this just turned into a very short filler chapter with Jumpstart being all protective-big-brother-y and Eva being (very forced soundingly) emotional. I need to work on emotion and serious writing. Critiques welcome! (Flames will be ignored, though.) So yeah. I just wanted to give you guys something, so here ya go. Sorry, next update'll be better (hopefully). Also, if you guys have any **ideas** for what you want to happen (unless it's anything romantic) please, **PM me**! Thanks you! R&R!))


	13. Incoming

Jumpstart

Eva didn't even react when she found me waiting for her when she exited the human living area. It had been a week since the night on the beach, and she had by now given up insisting that I didn't need to check up on her. She was my human, and I needed to be sure she was alright. But that was at the back of my processor, a much happier thought demanding my attention.

"Okay, you're smiling like a kid who's just been told they're going to Disneyland. What's up?" she asked, as I'd hoped she would.

"Another Autobot is landing tonight!" I replied, gleeful grin still in place.

"On Earth?"

"Yeah! We're gonna go meet him. We're about to leave, actually."

"Wait, who's going?"

"Uhh, Optimus Prime, Ratchet, Ironhide, Bumblebee, Lennox, Epps, and I."

She groaned. "Sam's gonna be _impossible_ to live with while Bee's gone!"

"Sorry. You're stuck with him."

She pouted.

"...Unless you'd wanna come with?" I asked temptingly.

"Yes!"

"That's my girl!"

She'd always been on the roster to go, but she didn't need to know that. It was more fun this way. I scooped her off the floor and made my way out onto the tarmac.

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"So. Do we even know who the new mech is?" Eva asked, absently tracing the Autobot insignia on my steering wheel.

"Nope. Why?" I responded, keeping most of my sensors on the road as we drove in a caravan with the other Autobots meeting the newcomer.

"The way you were grinning, I thought it was a close friend showing up or something."

"Nope. Just happy to have another of my kind in our midst. Humans are great, but I can't help but crave interaction with other Cybertronians."

"I understand the feeling. So then why am I coming? I can't see Optimus Prime letting me come just because I wanted to."

"He wanted to take you since you can understand Cybertronian. Something about making the transition easier."

"And is there a reason he put you on the team?"

"Optimus wanted you to have someone familiar with you so you'd be less nervous around the new guy."

Lie. I'd refused to let her go if I wasn't with her. What? No, I most certainly am not overprotective. Anyway, she didn't need to know I was fretting over her.

Luckily she accepted the lie.

"So you're bumming off me? Ya freeloader." she teased.

"That's me! Okay, you should sleep. We won't arrive until nightfall, and we need you alert."

"What, nap? I'm not a child!"

"Never said you were. Plus, I know for a fact that both Lennox and Epps are snoozing."

"How would you know?"

"I asked Ironhide. Did you know that Epps snores?"

"He does? Poor Ironhide. Even so, I pretty much just got up. I can't sleep now."

"Wanna bet? Hop in the back seats and lie down."

Before she could protest, I unbuckled the seatbelt and slid her seat back so she could get out easier. She rolled her eyes, but did as I asked. Once she was there, I molded the seats for her comfort and added heat to the cushions. I had to nudge her head down with a seatbelt a few times when she raised it to protest, but soon enough she was asleep. Even though she couldn't hear me, I felt the need to say it. "Told you so."

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"How long until they show?" Eva asked.

"I dunno. It's not a precise science." I responded.

Her response was to slump against the side of my helm like a dejected child. We both stared skyward, looking for a sign of the newcomer. Her view was hopefully improved from her perch on my shoulder. The other Autobots were in discussion, talking about logistics and planning what would need to be done to accommodate the new arrival, and Lennox and Epps were conversing on their own, hypothesizing about the new bot.

Everyone's heads snapped skyward as I called "There!" Everyone watched as what appeared to be a falling star streaked earthward. However, this meteor made it past the atmosphere and gouged itself into the Earth's surface.

Our company eagerly rushed toward the crash site.

* * *

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((A/N: Wow. This chapter really doesn't do much, huh? Well, that's because the plot bunny that's been sorta guiding me along up until up and went "lol bye, glitch." So now I'm kinda lost. I keep tossing around thoughts of who the new landers should be. Perhaps Sunstreaker will land, and Sideswipe will morph into a more G1 like Sides since his bro's back. Or maybe I'll introduce Evac since I actually like him and he's such an unused personality. I dunno.

So here's where I ask for your help!

**If you have ideas for this story, drop me a PM!** Tell me who you wanna see in this story, tell me what you think should happen, whatever! I want to hear from you guys! (Primus, this is a lot of exclamation points.) The one thing I won't do is romance. Other that, I'm game to try it! So go ahead, it only takes a few minutes from you and it may save this story, cuz it's kinda dead in the water as is. So click those little buttons! You know you wanna~))


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